News

Increase in population runs ahead of average

OXFORD’s population has jumped above 150,000 for the first time, according to newly-released data from the 2011 Census.

The figures from the Office for National Statistics show that the city grew faster than elsewhere in the county, with the population rising by 12 per cent between 2001 and 2011, from 135,500 people
to 151,900.

Across England and Wales, the population grew to 56,075,900 a rise of just over seven per cent during the decade between surveys, a figure matched in Oxfordshire as a whole.

Cherwell and West Oxfordshire also saw above-average growth, with increases of 7.5 per cent to 141,900 and 9.5 per cent to 104,800 respectively.

The Vale of the White Horse saw a 4.5 per cent increase to 121,000 in population, and South Oxfordshire a growth of 4.7 per cent to 134,300.
The county’s population stood at 653,900 last year, up from 607,300 in 2001.

The figures also revealed that there are now more than 5,000 people aged 90 or over living in Oxfordshire.

That equates to an increase of more than 41 per cent, meaning there are now an additional 1,653 nonagenarians or centenarians living in Oxfordshire than in 2001.

Bob Price, the leader of Oxford City Council, said: “We have had the intermediate estimates from the Office for National Statistics over the last few years which indicated the potential to go over
150,000, so we have been assuming we would see a figure of around this amount.”